The present invention relates generally to communication techniques. The techniques include a system and method of communicating telephone messages, such as voice, paging, and facsimile (fax) messages, by way of the Internet or any other network system having some form of transmission control protocol and not necessarily the TCP/IP protocols. More specifically, the invention relates to communicating such messages from and to stations which need not themselves require a computer or, in the case of voice transmission, any other form of central processing unit or digital signal processor.
Conventional telephone and facsimile communication involves real time communication and is often directly between calling and receiving parties. These conventional techniques generally require a telephone and/or a facsimile machine. As numerous countries industrialize, telephones and facsimile machines are becoming more available world-wide. As the number of users increases, the amount of traffic generated by telephones and/or facsimile machines also increases proportionately. Telephone calls between users in different countries such as Japan and the United States, however, continue to be quite expensive. For instance, a typical week-long business trip in Japan from the United States can incur hundreds of U.S. dollars worth of telephone services. Increased traffic generated by telephones and/or facsimile machines also leads to xe2x80x9cjamsxe2x80x9d in the communication lines, thereby leading to calls that never reach the receiving party.
In attempts to resolve some of these limitations, communication techniques have been proposed to use the Internet as a real time communication means. These communication techniques generally require at least two computers, where one computer is at the caller site and the other computer is at the receiver site. These computers, however, require a modem, which is connected to the Internet using a TCP/IP transmission protocol. A limitation with these techniques is that computers connected to the Internet are not generally available at easy to use locations. In addition, the servers on the Internet often malfunction, which lead to less than real time communication between calling and receiving parties.
From the above, it can be seen that a technique for communication that is easy-to-use and cost effective is highly desirable.
According to the present invention, a technique for providing voice messages and paging functions using a system of xe2x80x9cnetworkedxe2x80x9d computers is provided. This technique, including a method and system, uses existing telephones and pagers which are coupled to the Internet system for transmitting and receiving voice messages to a receiver from a caller.
In a specific embodiment, the present invention provides a system for transmitting messages from a caller location to a receiver location using a plurality of computers each coupled to another such as the Internet. The system also has a plurality of access devices, which are coupled to the network through a telecommunication line. These access devices include computers, workstations, and the like. Each access device includes a voice conversion board for converting a voice message from a telephone device into digital data for transmission through the network.
In an alternative embodiment, a method for telecommunication is provided. The method includes transmitting information from a first telephone device at a receiver location in a first service area through a telecommunication medium (i.e., telephone line, etc.), and receiving at the first service area the information in a first access device. The method also includes converting the information into a digital signal, and transmitting the digital signal over the Internet to a second access device at a second service area. Further steps of converting the digital signal into data for storage into a memory, and retrieving the data from the memory at the second service area using a second telephone device are provided.
A system for transmitting messages from a caller location to a receiver location using a paging system is also provided according to the present invention. The system has a plurality of computers, each of the computers being coupled to each other through a network such as the Internet. The system also has a plurality of access devices which are each coupled to the network through a telecommunication line. A paging device is also provided. This paging device is coupled to the access device using a paging system, which is adapted to receive paging data from a caller which will be sent to a receiver. The access device includes a processor coupled to a memory. The processor is also coupled to a voice conversion board for converting a voice message from a telephone device into digital data for transmission through the network. The processor also oversees receiving first paging data from the caller and transmitting paging data to the receiver through the telecommunication line.
In yet an alternative embodiment, a method of telecommunication using a paging system is provided. The method includes receiving at an access computer voice message data and paging data from a telecommunication line coupled to the Internet, where the paging data includes a paging number and a caller code. The method also includes converting the paging data and the caller code into telephone key codes at the access computer and calling a paging unit at a receiver location using a paging system, and transmitting the caller code to the paging unit at the receiving location, which calls the receiver using a local number.
Benefits of the invention include an easy-to-use voice mail and paging system. In particular, a caller of the present invention can rely upon almost any telephone to leave a voice mail for a receiver at a non-local mailbox using a local call or the like, which reduces costs associated with any conventional long distance telephone calls. Additionally, a caller can also page and leave a voice mail for a receiver at a non-local mailbox using a local call, further reducing costs associated with conventional long distance telephone calls. The page attracts the attention of the receiver, who can then call at that time, or some other time. Since these calls are generally all local in nature, the caller does not incur the costs associated with long distance calls. These long distance calls can be quite substantial when calling from countries outside the United States such as Japan, Korea, Europe, and others to the United States, for example.
The present invention achieves these benefits and others in the context of known telephone and computer technology. A further understanding of the nature and advantages of the present invention, however, may be realized by reference to the latter portions of the specification and attached drawings.